Yelp is sending out emails inviting small business owners to apply for a spot on its new, Yelp Small Business Advisory Council (YSBAC) — the group that Yelp announced last week in the small print of its bigger announcement about the end of Featured Reviews as an advertising feature.

A small business owner forwarded me the email today, and it reveals more about what the advisory council is and how it’ll work. This was presumably one of hundreds or thousands of similar emails sent out to small business owners with Yelp accounts. Here’s the text of the email:

Yelp was founded in 2004 to help people connect with great local businesses. Just over 5 years later, we are thrilled that millions of people use the site every month to do just that. We also recognize that there is always room for improvement.

Last week, we announced the creation of the Yelp Small Business Advisory Council (YSBAC), a formalized organization of business owners who will provide Yelp management with guidance and perspective regarding the concerns of small business owners.

YSBAC will be composed of 10 members representing diverse geographies and industries. The group will serve for an annual term. In addition to regular correspondence with Yelp’s executive team, the council will be relied upon to provide valuable input on changes to Yelp. We hope you’re as excited about this development as we are, and if you have some ideas for how Yelp can better serve the business community, we hope you’ll consider applying.

I’ve added the bolding there that explains how the council will work. And I’ve left the link in at the end, but only because it was tweeted earlier today by a well-known small business consultant/blogger.

In looking at the language again I’m left with a bit of a bad taste. I’m hopeful that this won’t be like the definition of “Yelp Elite” (a term at which I bristle – given it specifically references elitism).

As some may not know there are no objective criteria for Yelp Elite and I hope the selection of businesses allows an opportunity for dissent and isn’t just a superficial rubber-stamp.